Organizational Power

...power... "the probability that one actor within a social relationship will be in a position to carry out his own will despite resistance.	WHAT IS POWER? During discussions of leadership, the question often arises: "Why or how are leaders able to get followers to follow?" We have already discussed the notion that followers follow if the percieve the leader to be in a position to statisfy their needs. However, our discussion also included frequent reference to the concept of "power". We are now in a position to take a closer look at power. Definitions of power abound. German sociologist, Max Weber defined power as *"the probability that one actor within a social relationship will be in a position to carry out his own will despite resistance."* Along similar lines, Emerson suggests that *"The power of actor A over actor B is the amount of resistance on the part of B which can be potentially overcome by A."* Power appears to involve one person changing the behavior of one or more other individuals -- particularly if that behavior would not have taken place otherwise.

...power refers to A's ability to influence B, not A's right to do so; *no right is implied in the concept of power*...	At this point it is useful to point out that power refers to A's ability to influence B, not A's right to do so; *no right is implied in the concept of power. A related concept is authority. Authority does represent the right to expect or secure compliance; authority is backed by legitimacy. For purposes of differentiating between power and authority, let us examine the relationship between the manager of a sawmill and her subordinates. Presumably, the manager has the authority* -- the right -- to request that the sawyer cut lumber to certain specifications. On the other hand, the manager would not have the right to request that the sawyer wash her car. However, that sawyer may well accede to her request that he wash her car. Why? It is possible that the sawyer responds to the power that the manager has over him -- the ability to influence his behavior.
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It appears reasonable to assume that, if a given behavior is not something they would voluntarily engage in, then efforts by someone else to have them engage in that behavior would be met with resistance.	Any discussion of power begs the question: "*Where does this ability to influence another's behavior come from?" While much of the literature on power appears to concentrate on the exercise of power by some party, it may be equally useful to ask how people respond to someone else's exercise of power. People are not by nature compliant. It appears reasonable to assume that, if a given behavior is not something they would voluntarily engage in, then efforts by someone else to have them engage in that behavior would be met with resistance. Recent research has focused on the attempts people make to nullify or moderate the extent to which such influence is successful. In other words, the question being asked is: "What can account for people's abilities to resist attempts at influence.*" The answer appears to lie in dependency.
Actor A will have power over actor B if actor B is dependent on actor A.	*Actor A will have power over actor B if actor B is dependent on actor A.* This leads to the question: "What can account for this dependence?" In a general sense, we can conclude that *dependency is related to resources.* We use the term "resources" in a rather broad sense.
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.	For actor A to have power, the resources he/she controls must meet certain criteria (note the similarities to basic economic conditions): 1. Important: For example, if money is very important to B, and A is in a position to dispense money, then B is very likely to be open to A's influence. 2. Scarce: If promotions are unlikely to occur on a frequent basis -- they are scarce -- then B, wishing to be promoted, may accede to A's power if it can be shown that A has control over this scarce "resource". 3. Nonsubstitutable: If B cannot gain access to a desired resource other than through A, then A has power over B. A salesperson may attempt to gain power over a buyer by claiming that only the product she represents can satisfy the client's needs.
The exercise of power need not necessarily be a unilateral act. Both parties to a relationship may have dominion over resources that the other party desires...	This conceptualization of the power relationship between parties is also useful because it permits us to examine the reciprocal nature of that power. The exercise of power need not necessarily be a unilateral act. Both parties to a relationship may have dominion over resources that the other party desires -- resources that are important, scarce, and nonsubstitutable. In industrial relations, management, through its inherent right to manage the enterprise, has control over the operation of that enterprise -- it controls the job resource. However, the employees, represented by unions, control the resource of labor. Each of these parties controls some resource that the other requires. Dependency works both ways. Hence, there is reciprocal use of power. What is not clear, in this case, is which party has more power. The previous industrial relations example leads us to an examination of the potential behaviors of parties under different conditions of power balance.
	1.	Consider one extreme; B is significantly dependent on A (A has significant power over B) and there is no reciprocal or countervailing power. In this case, we would expect B to comply with A's wishes.
	2.	If the dependency relationship is more modest, then B might try to bargain with A. If your boss asked you to work overtime, you might attempt to negotiate a deal whereby you would get compensatory time off at a later date. In this case, assuming no union, the power balance lies with the boss. However, because she needs you to work (you control a needed resource), you have a degree of power. You are in a position to request a gain -- time off later -- because of your power.
	3.	Where the power distribution is more evenly divided, the parties may be inclined to cooperate. Negotiations over a labor contract may be characterized as cooperation in the sense that the parties work toward some mutual accommodation over the conditions of their working relationship.
	4.	If B has more power than A, then B may be inclined to fight any attempts by A to influence behavior.
	5.	In the event that B's power is absolute, B may simply ignore A's attempts at influence. Companies that have made large contributions to the election campaign of the political party in power, may ignore directives from civil servants. For example, such a company may be faced with a directive to act in a more environmentally friendly manner. Recognizing that the ruling government needs financing for an upcoming election campaign (the company controls an important resource), the company may decide to ignore the directive.

	Power is the ability to secure the compliance of others. On what is this power based? A number of efforts have been made at identifying types of power. On such classification scheme was proposed by Etzioni -- coercive, utilitarian or normative. In fact, in may be argued that organizations themselves may be classified according to the prevailing use of power. COERCIVE POWER involves forcing someone to comply with one's wishes. A prison would be an example of a coercive organization. UTILITARIAN POWER is power based on a system of rewards or punishments. Businesses, which use pay raises, promotions, or threats of dismissal, are essentially utilitarian organizations. NORMATIVE POWER is power which rests on the beliefs of the members that the organization has a right to govern their behavior. A religious order would be an example of a utilitarian organization.
	These three classifications of power, while useful in categorizing organizations, have proven to be too broad. A second model, proposed by French and Raven, identified five ways in which power may be exerted. REFERENT POWER Referent power is based on group members' identification with, attraction to, or respect for, the powerholder. As with reference groups, group members gain a sense of intrinsic personal satisfaction from identification with the referent powerholder. Charismatic leaders generally possess both legitimate and referent power. If Julio looks up to or admires Chris, he may follow him because of Chris' personal qualities, characteristics, or reputation. Chris uses referent power (also known as charismatic power) to influence Julio. Advertising that uses celebrities is an example of the use of referent power. A junior manager may assume an unnecessarily subservient role because of admiration of a senior manager. EXPERT POWER Expert power derives from group members' assumption that the powerholder possesses superior skills and abilities. Lucy has power over James because of her expertise (relative to his) in an area critical to their team's success. Presumably, the business mathematics instructor at BCIT has power over his students due his expertise in that subject matter. Frequently, expert power may be exercised in a rather narrow domain. LEGITIMATE POWER Legitimate power stems from an authority's legitimate right to require and demand compliance. Legitimate power exists when Edgar complies with the policeman's request that he take a breathalyzer test. Edgar agrees that the police have the right -- they have been granted authority -- to curtail his drunken behavior. Legitimate power depends on the official position held by the person exercising it. Legitimate power may be derived from three sources: prevailing cultural values can assign legitimate power to some individuals (elders, for example) accepted social structure may grant legitimate power to some people (for example, royalty) being promoted into a given position may confer legitimate power It has been argued that the downfall of the Shah of Iran came about because the Iranian people came to question and, finally, to denounce his right to legitimate power. REWARD POWER Wilf, as Organizational Behavior instructor, has reward power over his students; he can assign grades and determine whether or not a student acquires the requisite credits to move on in the business program at BCIT. Students will work well into the night to finish Organizational Behavior assignments because of Wilf's reward power. Rewards (reward power) have been shown to be effective when employees see a direct connection between performance and reward (Expectancy Theory of Motivation). However, in most work environments, managers have limited control over the nature of the rewards granted employees. COERCIVE POWER Coercive power is the capacity to dispense punishments to those who do not comply with requests or demands. According to Kipnis: "Individuals exercise coercive power through a reliance upon physical strength, verbal facility, or the ability to grant or withhold emotional support from others. These bases provide the individual with the means to physically harm, bully, humiliate, or deny love to others." Examples of coercive power in organizations include the ability (implied or real) to fire, demote, transfer to undesirable positions or strip subordinates of preferred perquisites. Coercive methods have also been linked to a number of dysfunctional group processes, including (1) dislike and rejection, (2) anger and reciprocal conflict, (3) revolutionary coalitions, (4) reactance, (5) reductions in intrinsic motivation, and (6) self-blame.
	The figure below indicates some probable employee reactions to the use of different types of employer power.